Wakfu (animated series)
Wakfu is an animated series aimed at pre-teens and produced mainly using Flash, although supplemented with traditional animation. It currently comprises two seasons of 26 episodes each, with about 22 minutes per episode. A few special episodes of various lengths are also attached to each season. At the press conference of Annecy 2015, Ankama confirmed that a third season would enter production in September (see below). The series is written primarily by Anthony Roux, Olivier Vannelle and Nicolas Devos, with character design by Xavier Houssin and Kim Ettinoff. Season 1 The series begins with an old man entrusting a baby to a recently-retired bounty hunter, the Enutrof Alibert, chosen for his pure heart. The first episode reveals the mysterious man to be Grougaloragran the Dragon, but nothing is known of the baby that he leaves with the Human. Twelve years later, the child Yugo's magical powers are revealed and he decides to go on a journey to learn about his people after Nox, the season's main antagonist, attacks his village looking for information on Grougaloragran. With the help of a few passing adventurers (Ruel Stroud the Enutrof, Alibert's old bounty hunting companion; Sir Percedal of Sadlygrove the Iop knight; Amalia Sheran Sharm, the Sadida princess; and Evangelyne, her Cra bodyguard), Yugo will travel the world looking for Oma Island, his only clue regarding his origins. Toward the end of the season, Yugo learns that he belongs to the Eliatrope people, who have not been seen in the world for millenia, and is reunited with his Dragon brother Adamai. Still joined by his companions, they form the Brotherhood of the Tofu and face Nox in his war against the Sadida as he seeks to drain the Wakfu of all living creatures to fuel his time travel. For more details, see List of Wakfu season 1 episodes. Season 2 In season 2, Yugo and Adamai use the Eliacube to try and learn what happened to the Eliatropes. In doing so, they free Qilby from another dimension and learn that he is their king, sent there by Yugo to protect him from the Mechasms' attack several thousand years ago. The Mechasms are a mechanical race that attacked the Eliatropes and forced them to flee their home planet, driving them to the World of Twelve before it was discovered by the gods. There the Mechasms attacked again and the Eliatropes could not drive them back nor escape. Qilby has a lot to teach the two, and he knows how to reach the Eliatrope children who were sent to a timeless dimension to keep them safe during the war. Once again, most of the season is spent by the Brotherhood of the Tofu traveling the world to find Qilby's Dofus, which he needs to fuel his magic and open a link to the timeless dimension. On their journey, they will make new friends but also fearsome enemies as they encounter the Rogue Remington Smisse and even Rushu, the king of Demons himself, on more than one occasion. The season culminates in an epic battle at Crimson Claw Island as Yugo unravels the truth behind the Eliatropes' dark past in the timeless dimension. For more details, see List of Wakfu season 2 episodes. Season 3 The latest information concerning season 3 (as of November 2015) was obtained in large part from the November 18 Community Update (summary). *Writer: Anthony Roux (Tot) *Director: Fabrice Nzinzi (Ntamak) *Runtime: 13 x 26-minute episodes *Expected release: Second quarter of 2017 (3 episodes completed as of June 2016). *The season will now be entirely serial and will again focus on the Brotherhood of the Tofu. A few years seem to have passed since the 2014 OVAs. *The season may be extended if well received. For previews of the season, see Wakfu Season 3 Image Gallery. For more details, see List of Wakfu season 3 episodes. Special episodes *Goultard le Barbare, Ankama's first animation project, gives insight on the past of Sadlygrove's mentor. Not intended for broadcasting, it is significantly more violent and contains subtle nudity. *Noximilian the Clockmaker reveals the origins of season 1's villain and the reason he is obsessed with traveling back in time. *Ogrest (OVA) is a 45-minute long episode that delves into the origins and childhood of the world's greatest menace, Ogrest. *Three 45-minute OVAs, The Ice Throne (OVA), Ush (OVA) and Dragon Mountain (OVA), that begin 6 years after season 2 and set the stage for season 3. For more details, see List of Wakfu Special episodes. Localization Wakfu has been adapted into several languages in neighboring countries over the years, including Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and Turkey. However, Ankama could never secure a deal with English-language networks and had to resort to crowdfunding in January 2014 to produce their own English dub. Distributed exclusively to backers on Blu-ray discs, the dub was not meant for direct distribution but to attract the favors of online streaming services as an alternate way to reach an international audience. It has since been picked up by Netflix in several countries and started airing in Australia in October 2014. Category:Animated series